The Only One That Works
by biggestboss
Summary: Naota is left heartbroken after the departure of Haruko, but his world shatters when she returns, to find that her litle Takun has finally swung the bat. slight crossover between manga version and anime version, but mainly anime.


It's been three years. three years since the robots, three years since the guitars, three years since the horns, and three years since my heart was broken. Nothing amazing happens here. Only the ordinary. I've come to turns with it, and I know that this is how it will always be. I thought I would be happy in predictability, but I still find myself walking past the same spot on the bridge every day. Nothing amazing happens here, since she left, and took my heart with her.

FLCL: The only one that works

Chapter one: Hybrid Sorrow

fifteen year old Nandaba Naota calmly walks his azure vespa out of his garage, mind focused on the task at hand. He walks it to the spot on a hill, where you can still faintly smell the scent of ashes. He desperately guns the engine, once, twice, and countless times more. Pain pricks at his barely-healed fingertips as old wounds reopen. It's like this every day. It's like a tradition, gun the engine, bleed, and cry. Soon, the grass, still wet with the morning dew, is joined by salty tears and crimson blood, creating swirls that are mesmerizing.

_Can you feel? _

After several hours of this, Naota sinks to the ground in despair.

"_It always happens! I almost get the vespa to fly, to even start, and then it dies back down! What's the point? She won't even remember me. I'm just another kid." _

Flashback

* * *

_Haruhara Haruko bobs up and down on a seemingly anxious yellow vespa, her eyes fixated on the boy before her. _

"_You wanna come with me?" _

_Inside my head I screamed 'YES!' I wanted to spend my whole life with her, even if she was just using me. Because, if you love someone, you just want to be near them. But all that came out was-_

"…"

"… _You know what, forget it. Cause you're still just a kid. Maybe next time." _

_And then she left. She flew away just like nothing was wrong. She flew away and took my heart, leaving nothing but a guitar, a feeble replacement of her. Then, Superior Raharu have me this vespa, said that I could reach the stars and find her."_

* * *

Gloomily, Naota walkes back to is house and parks his vespa inside the garage. He stumbles to his room and tenderly pokes his bleeding fingers. He stares fondly at the blue guitar standing in the corner of the room, before he jumped at a knock at the door.

_Can you feel that Hyrbrid Rainbow?"_

"Naota-kun, there is someone at the door to see you." Informed Kamon, his head just poking through the door. Naota picks himself up and tredges downs the stairs to the door, and opens it to see…

His brother's baseball team.

"Hey Nao. We have a game right now and we need another player to play. Wanna come with?"

"…Sure." It was always like this, ever since his brother came. He would round out the team when some players called in sick, and simply stood at the plate and never swung.

Naota shucked on the baseball uniform and grabbed his brother's red bat and followed the older player to the game field.

* * *

It was two outs, down by two, bases loaded on the last inning. Nandaba Naota stood up to bat, an indifferent look on his face. First pitch, a curve.

"_I can be your batting coach, if you want." _

"Strike One!"

The second pitch, a fastball."

"_Imagine an arc in you heart." _

"Strike Two!"

The last pitch, make or break the game, a sinker.

"_If you ever want anything to happen, you 'gotta swing the bat!" _

The sound of wood meeting leather echoes across the field as the ball flew straight up and out, pierving the white clouds, leaving a stunned crowd staring at the furious boy at the plate, his hands bleeding, the bat snapped in half.

_I can feel!_

* * *

On a hill, where you can still faintly smell the scent of ashes, a girl with pink hair sits on a bright yellow vespa, eyes staring at the baseball field before her.

'_He swung the bat!'_

* * *

Naota walked home alone, broken bat dragging behind him, a confused, yet seemingly happy smile on his face.

'_I swung the bat? I swung the bat. I swung the bat! Haruko will be so pleased when I tell he-' _

He came to a dead halt, and his smile immediately broke away, replaced by a single tear.

Naota dropped his bat to the floor as he sank to his bed, eyes briefly gazing longingly to the top bunk, which hasn't been touched since _she _left. Naota almos fell asleep before the voice of his father made him rise.

"Nao, dinner."

Naota walked down the stairs, rubbing the sleep out of one eye like a kid, as he opened the sliding door with his free hand, only to see…

"Yo."

_I can feel that Hybrid Rainbow!_


End file.
